Councillor didn't expect to win against 'might of Conservative party'
Cllr Melvin Wallace in Romford. - Credit: Paul Bennett
An independent councillor has lost his seat at Havering Council after 16 years of service.
Cllr Melvin Wallace, who has represented Squirrels Heath since 2014, said he will not stand in another election.
It comes after this newspaper reported Cllr Wallace wouldn’t be standing to be re-elected on May 5, but he denies this ever being the case.
Conservative's Keith Prince, Christine Vickery and Michael White are the elected councillors for Squirrels Heath.
Cllr Wallace was first elected in 2006 and has gone on to serve four terms of four years each.
The 77-year-old said he has “thoroughly enjoyed” his time as a councillor and shared that his loss didn’t come as a surprise to him.
He said: “When you’ve got the might of the Conservative party against you, you’ve got not chance.
“I feel happy for the Conservative three who got in.”
It comes after Cllr Wallace was expelled from the conservative party following investigation into alleged sexual harassment against an ex-councillor.
He added: “I wish every elected councillor the best of luck.
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“I just want them all to work together and do a brilliant job for our borough.”
